Ernest A. (Ernest Albert) Baker

Born in 1869, Ernest Albert Baker was an English author and editor whose work covered an unusually wide range: English fiction, dictionaries, librarianship, journalism, and books on outdoor life, especially caving.

He is chiefly remembered for The History of the English Novel, a major multi-volume reference work published between 1924 and 1939. He also wrote A Guide to Historical Fiction, and his interests reached well beyond literary study into practical and adventurous subjects.

That mix of scholarship and curiosity gives his writing a distinctive character. Whether discussing fiction or exploring underground landscapes, he comes across as a writer drawn to both careful research and the pleasures of discovery.